In addition to being a Democratic Representative, Rob Teilhet, is an attorney in the off-season. In this interview we focus on healthcare issues.

Gov. Perdue has recently announced a proposal to allow small businesses to pool funds in order to obtain a better insurance rate. The state and federal government would also contribute to this fund and the hope is that with about $20M to $30M from the State, about $180M could be generated to cover another 30,000 or so Georgians. Of course, this plan has to pass the legislature.

Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle has recently proposed to fund 5 new health clinics throughout the state. With 1.8 million Georgians without access to healthcare they can afford, Rob thinks that opening 5 new clinics is like putting a “bandaid on a severed jugular.”

Rob indicates that small businesses are growing more vocal in insisting that something be done about the high cost of health insurance and healthcare. If small business gets behind it, maybe, just maybe, something will get done. He particularly thinks something is going to get done to cover the uninusred children of the state.

We also discuss the issue of competition in health care and the Certificate of Need (CON) which has become a vehicle by which hospitals maintain monopolies and exclude competition. You can expect the CON to come under attack until it is gone. It just depends on how much money the hospitals and their lobbyist throw at the legislature.

Now for my rant and rave!

I was recently told by a doctor friend of mine that he had been notified by the Department of Community Health that the DCH intends to deny reimbursement to doctors and hospitals for costs incurred in taking care of complications that occur during treatment that would otherwise be covered. Folks, that is &%$#@!*&^% insane. Suppose you have surgery and then get an infection, which can happen and which does happen way too much. If DCH refuses to pay for the care you receive for the infection, do you think you will receive the best care that money can buy? No! This kind of policy is going to decrease the level of care you receive.

Why does something like this get implemented? One reason! Not enough money in the budget. And why isn’t there enough money in the budget, because the Republican legislature doesn’t care about the quality of health care, just money.

In case you don’t know it, the reason nothing gets accomplished to fix the problems with healthcare in this country is nothing but politics and money.